Pokemon: Shadow from the Past
by Dragonfire Prince
Summary: 30 years since the first time Cipher appeared and was destroyed, and everything is all right with the world. However, little does anybody know that Cipher will rise again, this time in a new Pokemon region...
1. Prologue

Note: Now, before you read, just make sure that Pokemon goes to Nintendo and Game Freak, but everything that happens in this story goes to me.

Now, this story takes place 25 years after what happened in Pokemon XD, and it has to do with Shadow Pokemon yet again, but it would start in a new region I made, so that region also belongs to me. Also, the story won't start off as it seems, but everything would come together as the story progresses. Another thing to add: the story will be from the main character's point of view starting from the next chapter, but i'll notify you people if there are any changes to that in a chapter before you start reading. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

Prologue 

_30 years ago, in a wasteland not far from the Johto region, a threat re-appeared in the world. That threat is known as Shadow Pokemon. Unfortunately, a young man who was in another criminal organization, stole a device that could steal Pokemon from other trainers, and abandoned that organization. On the way, he met a cheerful girl his age with a distinct ability to detect the Shadow Pokemon and together, they discovered these Shadow Pokemon and the evil uses for them, stopped that menace, and returned those Pokemon to their former selves and glory._

_5 years later, in that same region, that very threat returned yet again. This time, a child with extraordinary battling skills stopped the evil plans yet again. However, this threat grew even stronger, as the child discovered a Shadow Pokemon that couldn't possibly be purified. But, he caught the vicious creature and after a long time, he found using a different method of purifying the Shadow Pokemon to successfully purify the Shadow creature._

_25 years in the present, that occurrence never happened again, and has been forgotten by all who witnessed the past threat 25 years ago. Little did the world know, this time, the true cause of Shadow Pokemon will awaken and finally lay waste to the world… _


	2. Chapter 1: A new land, a new journey

Chapter 1: A new land, a new journey

"Groudon! Fire blast!"

"Kyogre! Ice beam!"

"No! Groudon!"

"The winner and Kyra region champion-Derek!"

Okay, that didn't really happen, I was actually dreaming at the moment. At least, until…

BRRING!

"AHH!"

…the alarm clock woke me up. I sat up, turned off the alarm clock and went back to sleep.

"Derek! How much longer are you gonna sleep? Do you know what day it is?"

"Uhh…New Year?" I replied.

"Today's the day you start your journey! Honestly, you are just like your father and brother…"

I got up out of bed and got dressed up (but not before I tripped over trying to put on my pants). I then got downstairs, where my mom and dad were. My mom has rather orange-reddish hair, and she has blue eyes. She's also a good person to have friends with. My dad, though, has sandy-blonde hair and golden eyes. What to describe about my dad…well, he's the opposite of my mom. Or at least, he USED to be the opposite. My mom told me ever since she met him, he's been slowly getting more kind and friendly (but I still think some of his former self is still with him).

"Morning, son." Dad said.

"Hey, dad." I replied.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you, Derek. Professor Shir wanted to meet you." Mom said.

"Really? Okay." I want out of the house and off to the Professor's house.

Oh, wait, I forgot, intro. My name's Derek and this is the Kyra region. It's a pretty average place and it's a bit nice here. Here in Origi town, this is where trainers in the Kyra region start their journeys. And today, that's when I'LL start my journey. Anyway, I made my way in the laboratory, where I also meet my best friend, Zack Shir. He's my best buddy in the whole Pokemon world. He's trusting, and he is…well, a bit of a genius (runs in the family, huh?), and he always dreams of capturing a Raikou. However, he has an electric Pokemon already, a little mouse known as Pikachu.

He was 8 years old when he had that thing as a Pichu. It was given to him on his birthday for a pet, and the person who gave it to him is none other than Marie Shir. Marie is Zack's little sister, and she can be pretty nice at times. And she also loves dragon Pokemon and she adores Lance (how fitting, isn't it?).

"Hey, Derek! How's it going?" He said.

"I'm okay." I replied.

"Welcome Derek," Professor Shir said. "You're starting your journey, huh?"

"Yep," I replied. "So, when do I get my Pokemon?"

"Whoa, slow down. First, I want to give you something. It's a Pokedex, it records data of every Pokemon you meet and catch," He said, giving the Pokedex. "Second, I want to give you some Pokeballs. They're useful for catching Pokemon," He then gave me at least 5 Pokeballs. "Third, do you know what we do in the Kyra region?"

"Uhh…can you give me a hint?"

"I'll explain," Zack said. "Here, we use battle associates. We use battle associates to only help out our other Pokemon in battle, not fight with them. Your battle associate is your first Pokemon, and you can only fight with it until you catch your first Pokemon. In other words, you can have up to 7 Pokemon with you. Also, you can keep you battle associate out of its ball if you want. Seriously, we already were taught that a long time ago."

"Guess I just forgot."

"One more thing," The Professor mentioned. "Your father told me he has a Pokemon already for you, so you should get going."

"Alright, see ya!" As I made my way towards my house, I noticed that only my mom was there outside, holding an Eevee and a strange device.

"Hey, where's dad?" I asked.

"Your father received an E-mail telling him to go to the Johto region, so he left," Mom said. "Anyway, I have something for you. It's your first Pokemon," She said as she held out the Eevee.

"Cool, I have an Eevee," I said, holding the Eevee.

"Oh, and your father told me to give you this." She held out the strange device in her hand. "It's a PDA, or Pokemon Digital Assistant. You can use it for E-mails and it even has a map of the Kyra region and a strategy memo to help you out in your battles."

"Weird, but useful." I said as I took the PDA.

"Derek, I hope you do good in your journey."

"Don't worry, mom, I will."

Just before she went in the house, she stopped and went back to me.

"I forgot one more thing," Mom said.

"Come on," I groaned. "How much longer do I have to wait?"

"Calm down, it's only one more thing," My mom said as she held out a letter. "On the way, I need you to send it to Professor Rais in Enigma town, but don't open it. Okay?"

"Sure, mom," I said as I took the letter.

When I began toleave Origi town, a familiar voice called me.

"Hey, Derek!" It was Zack, coming up to me.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Why don't we go together? I mean, think it: we'll journey side-by-side as pals, finding all sorts of Pokemon and battling many trainers along the way."

"Sure, we can do that." I replied.

"Alright, so when's the next town?"

I checked the map on the PDA.

"Bright town. It even has a gym there," I said. "There's also a Pokemon Center on the way," I added as I looked at the map.

"Bright town it is! Let's get going!" Zack said.

On the way, it seemed as if I had some good luck today, as Ifound a wild Treecko.

"This has got to be my lucky day," I said. "Go Eevee!"

"Vee!" Eevee said as it went into battle.

In the end, I caught Treecko and we moved on with our journey, hoping to get my next badge.

* * *

Note: For all those who played Pokemon Colosseum and/or Pokemon XD: Yes, the PDA is back, and so is Eevee. Also, see if the stuff I described for Derek's parents ring a bell; i'll be putting more hints later in the story. 

Also, you may have noticed that I put a new way to battle for the story. Don't worry if this battle associate thing is hard to understand, i'll clear it up for you in each battle.

And for people who are wondering what the letter is about: It may have to do with the Shadow Pokemon business, maybe not. And i'll also give you details on this Professor Rais character is when that part comes. Anyway, please give a review for the story so far; i'm all ears.


	3. Chapter 2: Pokepalooza

Chapter 2: Pokepalooza

Later that night, it started to rain, so we managed to get to the Pokemon Center before we really got wet. Anyway, that night, I got back to the dream I left off yesterday, until…

"Derek!"

…until Zack woke me up.

"Derek, do you know what day it is!" Zack said with enthusiasm on his face, but his very words gave me deja-vu.

"Who are you, Zack or my mom?" I replied.

"I guess you didn't check your calendar." Zack said as he looked out the window. Meanwhile, I saw Pikachu trying to wake Eevee up. "Today's the day!"

"The day for what?"

"Pokepalooza, of course!" Zack said. However, I laughed instead.

"Dude, even if Pokepalooza's today, it's all the way in the Hoenn region," I replied. "How are we supposed to get there?" Zack then shoved a flyer to my face.

"It says here that Pokepalooza is having a tour, and today, they're starting it in Bright town," Zack said. "I saw this flyer last night, and I told Marie, so she's coming today to Bright town to join along, too."

"That's cool and all," I said. "But, it was raining last night. Surely, they postponed it by now."

"Oh, really? Check outside."

I got off my bed, looked out the window, and I couldn't believe it. It was peacefully sunny outside, and I couldn't see any signs of the rain last night. Everything seemed as if it was magically dried up. In the distance, I could see a bunch of giant balloons shaped like Pokemon, and what seems like a roller coaster.

"That must be Pokepalooza," I said, pointing towards the giant balloons for Zack. "See it?"

"Cool! They must have finished it," Zack said. "C'mon, let's go!" Zack already left the room, while I got on my clothes and my gear.

"Wait for me! C'mon guys!" Pikachu tried smacking Eevee with its tail which stirred it up. After I left the room, they followed.

As we headed to Bright town, the place was pretty packed. There were kids and their families, playing many games and riding on the attractions. Today was a pretty perfect day to host Pokepalooza.

"Where should we go first?" I asked.

"First, we gotta find Marie," Zack replied.

We looked everywhere until we found her eating some cotton candy with a Swablu perched on her shoulder.

"How's it going, guys?" She said.

"Pretty good," Zack said.

"Hey Pikachu!" She said, scratching the mouse behind its ear. "Is that an Eevee?" Marie said as she saw it. "It's so cute!" As she hugged it, Eevee blushed in satisfaction.

"Hey! Let's try that Magikarp fishing game!" I said as we walked to the booth.

"So,who wants to play?" The vendor said out loud to make anybody want to play the game.

"Me first!" I said. There was a big fish tank (and I mean humongous).

"Okay then, in order to play, you'll need a fishing rod. Do you have a fishing rod?"

"No, not really."

"Alright then, I'll give you one, to keep." The vendor handed me a fishing rod.

"Here's how to play;" The vendor said. "You must simply cast away in this large tank here. It is filled with Magikarp, and once you caught one on the line, capture it with these lure balls." He handed me 20 lure balls. "I need these Pokemon, so don't keep it or anything.

"You must catch 10 Magikarp in two minutes," he continued. "But there are a few Feebas in there. If you caught one, you automatically win. But don't expect to focus on catching one, because I trained them to swim away from anything 'fishy'. If you win, you get a prize. Got that?"

"Yep," I said.

"Ready, start!"

I was pretty good. It was like they wanted to get caught. There was only one minute and 27 seconds, and already I caught 7 Magikarp. I had another pokemon on the hook, but when I reeled it in, a Mudkip jumped out of the water and drop-kicked me. It landed on its feet, but I didn't.

"Mudkip-mud!" Mudkip yelled as it stuck its tongue at me.

"How did a Mudkip get in there?" The vendor was puzzled, sticking his head in the tank for any 'other' Pokemon…

"Hey vendor, do you think you can stop the game for a minute?" I asked.

"Uhh, sure," The vendor said, still looking confused. I then turned to face the dreaded mud fish-thingy.

"Alright, Mudkip. You've been a pain in my neck already," I said. "Lure ball, go!" I threw a lure ball at the Mudkip. It was shaking by its struggle to keep Mudkip in there until it stopped shaking.

"Alright, I caught Mudkip!" I went to get the Pokeball as a small group of people applauded.

"Well, I was going to give you a stuffed teddy bear or something, but I guess you already got a prize," The vendor said, scratching his head.

"You okay, Derek?" Zack asked.

"Yeah, but it hurt more than I thought," I said. All of a sudden, people started to run and scream in fear.

"Help! Somebody help!" A person ran towards us, looking a bit worried.

"What happened?" Another person asked.

"Somebody's burning the festival!"

We all gasped in terror as everybody panicked. For some reason, I headed towards the fire.

"Where are you going?" Marie said.

"To stop the fire!" I answered.

"What makes you feel that you can stop the fire?" Zack asked.

"I don't know. I just feel like only I can do it!" I replied.

As I ran towards the fire, I thought to myself: _What have I gotten myself into?_


	4. Chapter 3: A Pokecrisis

Chapter 3: A Poke-crisis

Okay, let's recap to where we left off: We were on a happy trip to the world-renowned festival Pokepalooza when that all went aflame and I foolishly ran towards the fire to solve the problem. Now I wish I hadn't done that.

"Mudkip, water gun!" I shouted as Mudkip let loose a stream of water, but that didn't work much.

"Try a mud-slap!" I shouted again. This time, Mudkip tries to put out the fire with fistfuls of mud, but that didn't work, either. All of a sudden, I see Marie heading towards my path.

"Marie? What are you doing here?" I asked. "It's dangerous!"

"It's dangerous for you, too," Marie replied. "C'mon, we gotta go."

"Wait. Where's Zack?"

"Zack went off to alert the firemen," Marie replied. However, when she started to run, a flaming piece of wood was about to fall onto her, until…

"Sandstorm!"

…all of a sudden, a whipped up whirlwind of sand and mud clears out the piece of wood. The second the sandstorm clears, I see a kid come in the scene.

"You guys all right?" The kid asked. "Those flames would've burned you if I didn't come in."

"Yeah, we're fine," I replied. "I just have a question for you: Did YOU make that sandstorm, and how?"

"Yep, I'm the one who caused that sandstorm," The kid said. "As for how, well…" Then, the kid looked behind, and saw a Pokemon coming along his side.

"Is that a Vibrava! That's so awesome!" Marie said. Like I said, she loves dragons, and Vibrava (which is part-dragon type) is no exception.

"Yeah, it is pretty cool," The kid said. "Anyway, my name is Henry Rais."

_Rais?_ I thought. _Could he be the Professor's kid, or what?_

"I'm Marie Shir," Marie said. "And this is my friend, Derek."

"You must've trained it well to make it learn that move," I said. "I take it you were enjoying the rides, too, huh?"

"Not really," Henry said. "I was going on a chore when I noticed Marie was gonna get hurt. Now that I think about it, I need to go get that computer chip…"

"Vee! Vee!" Eevee shouted as it was looking at the big tent, which is on fire. My foolish pride told me to go put out the fire myself, but something else seemed to claim otherwise; Marie pulling on my shirt just when I was gonna start going.

"Derek, it's too dangerous," Marie said. "We can't do it."

"And then what will happen? The entire city would be burnt down?" I asked.

"Derek, you may want to help and put out the fire," Henry added. "But it's just too big of a job."

Then, I noticed a frightened Torchic dangerously close to the fire, which is a bit ironic. A piece of the flaming tent was about to fall on the little bird, just like the same thing happened to Marie a minute ago. I struggled myself to get out of Marie's grasp, and when I was let go, I went in to save the Torchic as Mudkip and Eevee followed.

"Torchiiiic!" The Torchic cried in terror. The flaming piece was inches away from Torchic, when Mudkip blew it away with a water gun, and I went to the bird's side.

"You okay, little fella?" I asked.

"Torchic!" it said, seeming delighted.

Feet across us, we saw a menacing pair of eyes in the dark bushes.

"Wh-who's there?" I asked, feeling a bit frightened about what MIGHT happen.

Just then, more evil eyes appeared in the bushes. Out of the bushes I found out it was a bunch of Pokemon: a Cyndaquil, a Combusken, a Quilava, a Houndour, and two Vulpix, all looking pretty mad.

"I-it's okay, guys. All we need to do is carefully and quietly…" and as we slowly get up, they start using an ember attack.

"RUUUUUN!"

We ran for our lives, avoiding being fried to a crisp. The bad part was that Torchic fell down and when we went back for it, they caught up to us and we had no time to run. Just as they attacked again, I heard a loud roar.

"Cuuune!" All of a sudden, rain started to pour and the ember attacks were doused before they hit us, along with all the fires. I also saw across the lake a silhouette: I couldn't figure out what it was, but it looked very majestic. I also couldn't find out the data of it on my Pokedex, simply because it ran away before I even had a chance.

Later that day, firefighters and hospital workers arrived at the site, checking the site and making sure all the people are unharmed. Also, I saw a truck come in with workers putting the attacking Pokemon in cages and into the truck.

"The way I see it," Henry explained to the three of us. "When the workers were building Pokepalooza, they trespassed on those fire Pokemon's territory, so that's probably why they set it ablaze."

"They'll probably be sent to a safe place," Zack added. Then, one of the workers came to us and looked at the Torchic, already frightened by him.

"Excuse me, but is this your Pokemon?" He asked me. "We can't afford for another wild Pokemon to cause trouble." But, as I opened my mouth to explain, Zack covered it.

"Yes, it is," Zack replied as the worker walked off. I took his hand off my mouth.

"Why'd you say it was mine?" I asked.

"Think about it, buddy; you already have Treecko and Mudkip, so having Torchic would complete your small collection," Zack said.

"Besides," Henry added. "Bright town's gym leader uses grass-type Pokemon, so it should give you an advantage."

"Well, that's a good idea." I replied. Torchic then hopped into my arms.

"I caught a Torchic!" I said.

"Torchic!" Torchic said in a cheery mood.

After we said goodbye to Henry, we all decided to spend the night at the Pokemon center (I really felt tired after all that happened that day). The next morning, we all woke up and headed to the gym, where I'll finally get my first badge.

* * *

Note: Derek and his foolish pride...well, at least he got a Torchic! As for the mysterious shadow Derek saw: maybe it's a Pokemon, maybe not. But why did it want to help out Derek, out of all people? Well, you just have to find out about that. 

Also, it seems that we have met a new character: Henry Rais. The last name sounds familiar, maybe he could be related to this Professor Rais character. But why does he have to get a computer chip? Who knows.


	5. Chapter 4: A righteous battle

Note: I haven't been updating the story lately; I got busy with school and that sort of stuff. And now, on to the story and Derek's first gym badge.

* * *

Chapter 4: A righteous battle

"Hello? Anybody there?"

As Marie, Zack and I head into Bright town's gym (which looks more like a greenhouse than a gym), we looked and discovered nobody there. We decided to see if there was any Pokemon there, though. As we looked around, I was startled by a voice that appeared out of nowhere.

"Calm your mind…feel the sublime flow of the air, the trees, and the sounds of temptation…your eyes only see in front of you, so free your mind to see all around you…calm your mind and you can become powerful…"

"O-okay, whoever is there, show yourselves!" I said, frightened and armed with a nearby fallen branch.

I decided to find out where the voice came from, and through some nearby bushes, I saw a person who looked like a flower hippie, a Roselia, a Bayleef, a Tangela, and a Meditite all meditating.

"Okay, whoever you are, don't come any closer," I said, ready to swing my branch. "I'm armed."

"Dude, like, lighten up," The guy said, getting up. "I'm not gonna harm you."

"Okay, anyway, by any chance, have you seen the gym leader?" I said, dropping the branch.

The guy started chuckling and said, "Dude, I am the gym leader!"

…I couldn't believe it. Honestly, I even fell at the very doubt of it.

"Why you, of all people, want to be a gym leader? Are you even a licensed gym leader?" I asked.

"In this order: Because I think I can show trainers how I can truly battle with my techniques, and yes, I'm a licensed gym leader," He says. "I have a question, too: Why do YOU want to be a trainer?"

"Well, I want to be a trainer because it's so I could be the best, and so I could follow in my brother, Garu's footsteps," I answered. "I look up to him."

Zack and Marie went to where I was, just in time for the gym leader to introduce himself.

"The name is Roger," He said.

"My name is Derek."

"And I'm Marie."

"Zack's the name."

"Hey, I wanna know one more thing," I added. "What IS your technique?"

"Well, since you were wondering," Roger started. "My technique in battling is meditating."

The next minute, we all wound up meditating next to Roger and his Pokemon, saying the same chant that scared me earlier.

"Calm your mind…feel the sublime flow of the air, the trees, and the sounds of temptation…your eyes only see in front of you, so free your mind to see all around you…calm your mind and you can become powerful…"

"Come on," I complained. "Can we have our battle NOW?"

"Ssh," Marie said. "If you irritate the gym leader, we'll probably get kicked out."

"It's okay, dudes," Roger replied. "I've been meditating a long time, so, like, nothing bothers me.

"The little dude is right, though," Roger added. "I shouldn't waste your dudes' time. We should battle."

"Um, does anybody but me notices that he says 'dude' a lot?" Zack commented.

* * *

A moment later, we found us a very decent battlefield, along with a referee.

"This match will be a 3-on-3 Pokemon battle," the referee said. "The gym leader cannot switch Pokemon, but the challenger is allowed as many times as he wants. Both trainers are allowed to use their battle associates. Let the match begin!"

"Ready, dude? Go Tangela!" Roger said. Roger threw a Pokeball and out came Tangela, which kinda looked like a bunch of purple spaghetti. At school, I learned those were its vines (but why that many?).

"Torchic, I choose you!" I said. I threw a Pokeball and Torchic popped out. When it saw Tangela, it was scared silly, and it was kinda embarrassing.

"Don't worry! Just use an ember!" Torchic spat out a barrage of flames.

"Use protect on Tangela, Meditite!" Meditite made a magical force that protected Tangela from the fire attack.

"Now use tickle!"

Tangela went up to Torchic, which worried the little bird a bit, then using those vines, Tangela tickled Torchic and made it unable to stop laughing. Then it hit Torchic with one of its vines harshly.

"What just happened?" I was a bit confused that a simple attack like that could hurt Torchic that badly.

"Tangela's tickle well…like, tickles your Pokemon and makes it easier to damage it with a move, like, Tangela's slam attack for instance." Roger pointed out.

_Great, _I thought. "Torchic, use another ember!"

Just as Torchic blew another ember attack, Roger ordered another protect from Meditite, thus making Torchic's ember again useless.

"Return, Torchic!" I held up Torchic's Pokeball, and in a red light, it absorbed the Pokemon in it.

_Boy, is this tough_, I thought. _Mudkip is a water type_,_ so it would get creamed_,_ while Torchic is too inexperienced. My best bet is to use Treecko as much as I can. Its speed can knock them off balance._

"Go! Treecko!" I threw a different Pokeball and out of that came my Treecko.

"Pound attack, Treecko!" Treecko charged towards Tangela and hit it with its tail.

"It's okay, Tangela, we'll do this like we always do," Roger reassured Tangela.

"Meditite, try a calm mind." Hearing that, Meditite goes into meditation.

_Wait, _I thought to myself. _Dad told me that Eevee knows confusion. If I can just think of some way to use it…bingo!_ I thought as I went up to Eevee.

"Eevee, I need you to…" I whispered in Eevee's ear. "Got it?"

"Vee," Eevee said in acceptation andconfusement.

Meanwhile, Treecko looked at us, both worried and puzzled.

"Don't worry, Treecko," I said, "I have a plan."

"Tangela! Use a vine whip attack!" ordered Roger.

"Eevee, now's your chance! Confusion!" I said.

Eevee used its confusion to pick up Treecko, and like a controller, Eevee tries to avoid the vines.

"Now, Treecko! Pound attack!"

Treecko then whacks Tangela hard with its tail just before they made direct contact.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Marie said.

"Eevee can learn confusion?" Zack said in a puzzled voice.

"It's possible," Marie replied. "That was a good strategy, though; using confusion to control Treecko and attack head-on," Marie explained.

"But he timed Roger's attack to leave Tangela vulnerable to a DIRECT attack," Zack added. "And at that velocity, Tangela is as good as spent."

Tangela tumbles down, completely knocked-out.

"Tangela is unable to battle," The referee said. "Treecko wins the round."

"All right! You okay, Treecko?"

"Treecko!" said the gecko, giving the thumbs ups and seeming excited.

"That was excellent," Roger said. "I never knew that little dude of yours knows confusion. Go Roselia!"

Roger throws a different Pokeball, revealing what looks like a small…thing with flowers for hands.

"How can that…thing grab anyways?" I asked. "Nevermind. Treecko! Quick attack!"

As Treecko charged towards Roselia, it seemed as if it didn't move. Soon enough, Roselia got struck hard, but it seemed Treecko took some damage, also.

"What the heck just happened?" I asked.

"That, little dude is what we call an ability," Roger said. "Poison types, like Roselia, have an ability called Poison point, which can poison anyone who comes in contact."

"Great," I complained. "Return, Treecko."

_Great, now I have a Mudkip, a poisoned Treecko,_ _and an inexperienced Torchic _I thought to myself._ Guess I'll just have to hope Torchic can win for me._

"Go Torchic!" I threw out a Pokeball, releasing the little chicken.

All of a sudden, I dropped to my knees and put my hands together.

"PLEASE, Torchic!" I begged. (What can you expect? I was just a rookie, and it's my only chance.) "Please help me win this battle!"

"Tor?" Torchic said. I knew the expression on its face; it meant to say, "What the heck are you doing?"

"C'mon, Torchic! Just help me beat this guy!"

"Torchic!" It said, looking at Roselia with determination.

"Hey Derek!" Zack shouted out as I looked in his direction. "Torchic knows another attack. It's called fire spin, and it'll help great in tough battles."

"Fire spin, eh?" I said. "Let's try it, Torchic. Fire spin attack!"

Torchic reared up, sucked in breath, and exhaled a big spiral of fire, hitting Roselia on the mark and causing it to faint.

"Roselia is unable to battle," The referee said. "Torchic wins the round."

"Wow, that's powerful!" I commented.

"You did good, little dude," Roger said. "But get ready for an even tougher Pokemon. Go Bayleef!"

Out of Roger's final Pokeball, I saw a Pokemon I have never seen: it was twice the size of any of my Pokemon, and it had a leaf on it's head, it was on all fours, and it looked kinda like a dinosaur. What's weirder is that there was a strange scent that weirdly caused us to get pumped up even more.

"Hope you're ready, dude," Roger said. "'Cause I'm not backing down. Bayleef, sweet scent!"

Bayleef raised its leaf up in the air and all of a sudden, an aroma filled the air that was quite…pleasurable.

"Wow, what's that smell?" I asked, while at the same time Torchic was in the moment, too.

"Now, Bayleef, body slam!" Bayleef charged towards Torchic, which caused Torchic to faint.

"Torchic is unable to battle," The referee said. "Bayleef wins the round."

"That sweet scent must've caught Torchic and Derek off-guard," Zack said. "Now with hard options, what can he do?"

"I don't know," Marie said. "But with something as tough as Bayleef, how can he win?"

"I'll think of something," I replied. I had no choice but to bring out Treecko.

_Maybe the strategy can work, _I thought to myself.

"Go Treecko!" I brought out the Pokemon again. I knew because it's poisoned, I only have one shot.

"Alright, Eevee, let's do it again!" I said. "Confusion!"

Eevee once again lifted up Treecko and threw it towards Bayleef.

"That won't work a second time," Roger said. "Protect!"

Meditite used protect for the third time in a row, which caused for the technique to work miserably.

"Now, Bayleef, razor leaf!" Roger said. From the leaf on its head, Bayleef swung it and many various leaves come targeting towards Treecko, all getting every shot, and causing Treecko to faint.

"Treecko is unable to battle," The referee said. "Bayleef wins the round."

"Derek can't win," Marie said. "That Bayleef is just too tough."

"Don't worry, sis," Zack said. "Derek has Mudkip, and that little fella has more strength and ferocity than the other two combined. He has a chance."

_He's right, _I thought. _Mudkip's tough, maybe even tougher than Bayleef. He had shown it was strong, seeing it in action during the fire at Pokepalooza. It's my only chance._

"Go, Mudkip!" I said as I threw my Pokeball, bringing out my only Pokemon.

"Mudkip, I know it's your first battle, but you need to stay strong," I said. "Do the best you can, and we won't lose!"

"Mudkip-mud!" Mudkip said in determination.

"A Mudkip, huh?" Roger said. "It may be a water type, but it looks tough. Get ready with a calm mind, Meditite."

"That's right, don't underestimate Mudkip!" I said. "Now Mudkip, tackle!"

Mudkip, giving all it's got, charged toward Bayleef and caused it to slide a few feet back.

"Wow, it is tough," Roger said. "But not when Bayleef uses it's psych up!" Bayleef then goes to meditation and a white glow forms around it and Meditite.

"Careful, Derek!" Zack said. "Psych up copies the exact same strength and defence of a Pokemon, and since Meditite was using calm mind a lot, Bayleef's razor leaf will be a lot stronger!"

"That'll be tough," I said. "But wait; if it copies the _exact _same strength from a Pokemon, that means Bayleef's defensive strength is a lot weaker because Meditite isn't very defensive. In fact, that should even things up. Now, Mudkip, tackle!"

As Mudkip charges toward Bayleef again, it tries to throw another razor leaf attack, this time with greater force, but Mudkip dodged each one and hit Bayleef hard.

"Wow, that was awesome, Mudkip!" I said.

"Mudkip!" Mudkip cried in glory. All of a sudden, Mudkip started to glow.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Derek, it's…evolving," Zack said.

As the glowing stopped, I saw a different-looking Pokemon; it stood on it's hind legs now, and it looks almost the same like Mudkip, but a lighter color and two tail fins.

"What is that?" Marie asked?

"That's a Marshtomp," Zack said.

"Wow, Mudkip evolved," I said in awe. "Alright, Roger, you're looking at a new and improved Pokemon! If you think Mudkip's tough, think again!"

"Is it me, or has Derek gotten more cocky?" Marie said, which I heard from there.

"Yep, he has," Zack replied.

"I heard that!" I said. "Anyway, tackle, Marshtomp!"

It seemed as if Marshtomp was faster on its hind legs, as it moved fast and charged at Bayleef.

"Fight back, Bayleef!" Roger said. "Razor leaf!" Bayleef unleashed another razor leaf again. Marshtomp dodged each one, but a few managed hit Marshtomp, and they hit hard.

With a few scratches and bruises, Marshtomp and Bayleef were still standing.

"Derek!" Zack said, giving one more piece of advice. "Marshtomp also knows a move of its own. It's called mud shot, it can help by slowing the opponent down."

"That'll work good," I said. "Now, Marshtomp, mud shot!"

"That isn't gonna work, dude," Roger said. "Meditite, protect!"

"Not so fast!" I said. "Eevee, sand-attack Meditite!" Eevee threw a big amount of sand at Meditite, which caused Meditite to lose momentum, and as the protect failed, the mud shot hit Bayleef. It worked, too, as the Pokemon tried to get the mud out its eyes.

"Now finish it! Tackle attack!" I said.

As Marshtomp reared up one more time, it charged full strength at Bayleef, which caused it to finally faint.

"Bayleef is unable to battle," The referee said. "The winner of this round and the gym match-Derek and Marshtomp!"

"All right!" I said with enthusiasm. "We did it, buddy!" I said as Marshtomp and I hugged each other in mid-air, each of us with a big smile on our faces.

* * *

We all ended up at the entrance of the gym, as it was only an hour since we arrived to the gym.

"That was a very righteous battle, dude," Roger said. "You deserve this: a mystic badge." He said as he held out a gym badge.

"All right!" I said as I took the badge. "I got the mystic badge!"

"That's cool, Derek," Marie said. "You have a gym badge."

"Well, before we get even more mushy," Zack protested. "We better get to the ferry and fast."

"Why the ferry?" I asked.

"We need to get to Orita Island, and we need to cross Topina cave there to get to the mainland. Besides, there's a gym in Starr bay; once we get there, we relax and then get ready for your gym battle." Zack explained.

"What are we waiting for?" Marie said. "Let's get to Starr bay; I heard they have the best seafood there!"

"Marsh?" Marshtomp said in concern.

"Don't worry," I said to comfort it. "She doesn't mean to eat you." Marshtomp only sighed in relief.

"Anyway, on to Starr bay and my second badge!" I added.

We said goodbye to Roger and headed to the ferry, where we head to Orita Islands to get my next gym badge.

* * *

Note: It seems a bit longer than the other chapters, but it was a bit worth it. Well, at least Mudkip actually evolved. And it was kinda dumb to make thegym leader a hippie; it did help with the Meditite and the whole meditation thing. Anyway, I will get to finish next chapter in about a week. Also, give some reviews for this, as it is my first fanfic. 


	6. Chapter 5: Derek and the rebel

Chapter 5: Derek and the rebel

As we got onto the ferry to Orita Island, we relaxed a bit and decided to send all our Pokemon out. I decided to send an E-mail message to my mom.

"_Dear mom,_ " I said as I was typing it on my PDA. "_Things are going great so far. Not only did I catch a Mudkip, Treecko, and Torchic, but also my Mudkip evolved and I managed to get my first gym badge. I'm with Zack and Marie in a ferry to Orita Island. See ya soon!_"

Just as I sent the message, I received an E-mail message from Roger.

"_Hey little dude,_"I read to myself. "_Hope you're having a righteous time. When you can, come to the Bright Town gym anytime, and like, do some meditation…or a battle if you want that._" I chuckled at the meditation remark.

I felt good, as I was traveling among the water, there was a cool and crisp breeze, and it was very sunny out. It was a perfect day to relax and hang out, not to mention get a gym badge.

* * *

"WHAT?" 

…or so I thought. It turns out, the door to the gym was locked and there was a sign on it, saying that the gym is closed.

"Closed?" I said. I was raring to get to my gym battle, but it was closed, on today of all days. "Re-opens…NEXT MONTH? Is this even true?"

"Don't worry, Derek," Zack said. "At the rate we travel, you'd get…2 more badges by next month."

"But for the moment," Marie added. "I say we get some seafood! Let's go, Swablu!"

She and Swablu ran off before we even noticed, and we were trying to catch up to her. All of a sudden, a blur ran past Marie, and then a flamethrower was about to hit her as she screamed in terror.

"Marshtomp, water gun!" I said as I threw out Marshtomp's Pokeball just in time for the mud fish to let out a stream of water to block the flamethrower. Nearby, we saw two red Pokemon, both red colored, one small, and one big. The small one looks almost like the big one, their mouths almost looking like beaks, but the small one was red with yellow on its belly, while the bigger one had a flame on its tail, and it was red and yellow, too, but in a flame pattern. We also saw a familiar face, which we all loathe so much.

"Great, how did you urchins manage to get good Pokemon, let alone graduate from school?"

People, I despicably introduce to you Winston Stone. He's the most annoying and snooty kid you'll ever meet. He thinks money and only money is all that matters, and his dad is the CEO of the Devon Company. Since that company makes big bucks and his brother's the Hoenn champion, he thinks he's greater than everybody.

"Great, what are you doing here?" Zack said. "Going to the 99 cents store?"

"Ha-ha, you ungrateful rat," Winston said. "In fact, I heard thattheveryPokemon thatjust passed by iscausing all sorts of trouble here."

"And what does that have to do with you?" Marie said, ticked off at him.

"To capture it, of course," Winston said. "If this Pokemon is half as tough as everyone says or if it's a rare Pokemon, my dad says I could have it as a little present. And if I don't want it, I'll just simply sell it."

"You make me sick," Zack said. We all hated him, but the real rivalry is between Zack and Winston; they have been starting it ever since they were 4.

"You just see. I'll have it in no time. These Pokemon dad let me borrow will help."

"And what will happen if you COULDN'T catch it?" I said.

"I'll just call the police and send it to the pound," Winston said. "I'll be seeing you little lab rats later." And at that, he left along with the two Pokemon.

"What are we gonna do now?" I asked.

"I'll tell you what we're gonna do," Zack said. "You're gonna catch it so I can shove it in his stupid little face."

"Why me?" I asked hesitantly.

"You're a better trainer than us," Marie said. "Besides, I want to get my revenge for him getting gum all over my hair last year!"

"This Pokemon would be a good addition to the team if it really is tough. It could help me out a lot in gym battles."

A minute after walking around the harbor, we heard a commotion by the Pokemon Center. We went there and we saw a sailor with two Pokemon. They were exactly the same, they were grayish-light bluish in color, and they had some developed muscles. He was battling a wild Pokemon, which might be the one causing trouble. It was battle-scarred, and it was black in color with sharp claws with sharp looking eyes.

"Those two are Machop," Zack said, pointing at the two muscle Pokemon.

"And that must be the Pokemon everybody's talking about," Marie said, pointing to the black Pokemon. I looked it up in my Pokedex.

"It says here it's a Sneasel," I said. "It also says it lives in frozen caves and mountains."

"That's strange, a Sneasel all the way out here in a harbor," Zack said.

"Machop, let's get this Pokemon and get our reward!" The sailor said.

The two Pokemon charged toward the Sneasel, but it vanished just before it hit them.

"That's a fast Pokemon!" Marie said.

"It's using agility," Zack explained.

The Sneasel appeared then disappeared again. When it re-appeared, it struck one of the Machop.

"That's a faint attack," Zack said.

However, just a split-second after Sneasel used the attack, the other Pokemon used a karate chop attack and hit. But, all of a sudden, it disappeared and in mid-air appeared 6 more Sneasels.

"Before the Machop could even attack, it probably used double-team and an illusion took its place," Zack said.

"But that was so fast," Marie said. "You could barely see it coming."

Then, all of the Sneasels ran around the two Machops, which made them go dizzy. All but one of the Sneasels disappeared and the remaining Sneasel's claw glowed. He swung its claw at the two and hit them so hard, they were instantly knocked out.

"But- that was a crush claw!" Zack said. "How can a Sneasel learn crush claw?"

"Wow, crush claw, too," I said in awe. "I gotta have this Pokemon."

"It took down two Machops at once without even taking a hit," Marie said. "I don't think nobody could ever beat it."

The Sneasel then vanished without a trace, and the people crowding around scattered after. We saw Winston once again as soon as the crowd cleared.

"Impressive, isn't it?" He said. "I'll really enjoy this one."

"What makes you think you'll catch it?" Zack said. "As far as I know, Derek could have as much of a chance as you do."

"The two of you don't stand a chance," A lady said, overhearing us talk. "This Pokemon is too fast and too strong."

"I heard that Pokemon has been stealing food and clothes from the Pokemon Center," A man said, appearing out of nowhere. "It takes sackfulls of the stuff, and no matter how hard people try, they can't beat it."

"Yeah, well I heard that the Pokemon was sneaking around the warehouses at night," A teenager said, showing up all of a sudden.

"Warehouse, eh?" Winston said. "I'll be sure to check tonight."

"Don't count your Torchics before they hatch," Marie said. "We might get to the bottom of this before you do!"

"So, it's a challenge?"

"Yep, and may the best man win," I said, holding out my hand. Winston refused to shake it, though, and turned away.

"I intend to," Winston said, making his leave.

* * *

Later that night at the Pokemon Center, we got ready. 

"Walkie-talkies?" Zack said.

"Check," I said.

"Binoculars?"

"Check," Marie said.

"Pepper spray?"

"Che- wha?" I said.

"In case Winston comes, so we give him some in his eyes," Zack replied.

"Right, check."

"Alright, team, here's the plan," Zack pulled out a map of the city. "Marie, you head to 48th street. I head to the corner 53rd and Indris. Derek, you start out at 8th avenue and make your way to Andreas road. Once there, you give us the signal and Marie moves 3 blocks East. Once one of us spots Sneasel, give me the signal and I move to 39th street. From there, I could be able to pinpoint the location of Sneasel. Then, you two from your locations move to the coordinates. Once there, you surround Sneasel, then fight it, and catch it. Mission accomplished."

"Pretty longwinded," I said. "Will this work?"

"100," Zack said. "Now let's get going!"

It was 11:50 at night (way past our curfews) and we snuck out and headed to our positions. As I moved to a different location, I gave the signal through the walkie-talkies. After, it seemed like forever, as I was about to fall asleep. I then noticed a shadow on top of a warehouse roof; it was the same one as during the incident at Pokepalooza. It then ran off, as I got up again. I turned around, and I saw a different shadow swoop by; in the moonlight, I noticed it was Sneasel.

"Bogey on sight! I repeat, bogey on sight!" I shouted through the walkie-talkie.

"Gotcha," Zack responded on the other line. "I'm in position. The coordinates are at 30th and Maple. Got that, guys?"

"Read you loud and clear," Marie said.

"Heading there now," I said.

We got to the location, where we met the Pokemon.

"Alright, Sneasel!" I said. "Get ready to be captured!"

"Snee!" Sneasel said, itching for a battle.

"Go, Marshtomp!"

"Go, Seadra!"

We both threw out Pokeballs, revealing Marshtomp and a Pokemon that's blue in color, but it looked kinda like a Horsea, but with spikes on it.

"Seadra?" I asked.

"I found it while fishing in the creek one day," Marie said. "Besides, Seadra evolves into Kingdra, don't you know?" Let me tell you, if you wanted to know about dragon Pokemon, no one knows about them better than her.

"Marshtomp, slow it down with mud shot!" Marshtomp tried to do an attempt, but Sneasel was too fast.

"Swablu, try a sing attack!" Marie ordered. Swablu sang a pretty good sonnet, and no matter how fast it was, Sneasel could still hear it, as it fell asleep.

"Now, Marshtomp, tackle!"

Marshtomp charged at Sneasel so hard it flew at least a few feet far. However, Sneasel felt it and it woke up. It landed a dismount, and using agility, it went and attempted a crush claw attack at Marshtomp, but Seadra went in front of it, taking the damage and getting knocked out. But, Sneasel seemed to get hurt, too.

"Return, Seadra," Marie said as the Pokemon returned in its Pokeball. "I hope Marshtomp wins this. My Seadra's Poison point helped by poisoning Sneasel. You just need to finish it," Marie said to me.

"Right," I said. "Now, Marshtomp, water gun!"

Marshtomp let loose a water gun attack, but as Sneasel dodged it, the poison took effect, as it winced.

"Now's your chance! Slow it down with mud shot!"

Marshtomp once again used a mud shot, this time hitting and hitting hard. It seemed like Sneasel is on its last legs.

"Now, Marshtomp! Finish it with ta-"

"Code red! Code red!" Zack shouted over the walkie-talkie.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Winston must've called the police on us. You gotta hide, quick!"

We then noticed Sneasel limping away, so we decided to follow it. It led us to an alley, then continued to a back wall to a warehouse, and crawled through a hole small enough for only people Marie and my size to fit through. Once we were in, we realized it was rather dim, and there were plenty of packages and sacks.

"Those must be the stuff that Sneasel stole," Marie said.

"Why would it want to steal all this stuff?" I asked.

Sneasel moved to a corner of the room. We got closer and saw many baby Pokemon, all playing and eating food. Some of them were sleeping under some toasty-looking clothes.

"Aww, they're so cute!" Marie said.

"That's why it stole the items," I said. "It wanted to feed all these Pokemon and to make them warm."

"Well, we should help them. It's too sad for them to continue living like this. We should set them free."

"Yeah, but how? We can't just get them out of the city, especially with the police around."

"We'll tell them why this happened. They'll listen."

"No, they'll think we're crazy. We're just kids."

"Then let's have some evidence." Marie then squatted down to face Sneasel. "What do you say? Come with us so we'll set all this straight."

Sneasel looked down and thought for a minute, and with some convincing from Marshtomp, it agreed to help.

"Thank you, Sneasel," Marie said.

"So all we gotta do is sneak around the cops and we'll be home free," I said.

We decided to go over a concrete wall in order to avoid the police, but just as we unexpected it, Winston appeared.

"I can't believe you fell for it!" He said. "I merely hired some people to be fake cops to get you out of hiding. But I never thought that you would have Sneasel."

"Out of the way, rich boy!" I said. "We got something more important to do."

"I don't think so," He protested. "I said I want the Pokemon, so give it to me now!"

"Yeah, right, you spoiled brat," I replied. "How about a battle? You know you don't stand a chance against me. I was one of the top students at school."

"Fine, but you don't know my dad can get me whatever I want, whether I lose or not."

"Alright! Go-" All of a sudden, Sneasel stepped forward.

"Sneasel? You wanna fight?"

"Snee!" Sneasel said. I could even see the fire in its eyes.

"Right. Go Marshtomp!"

"Magby, Magmar, use flamethrower!" Winston ordered as the two Pokemon used flamethrower.

"Sneasel, dodge! Marshtomp, block with water gun!" Marshtomp used a water gun attack to stop the attack like before, while Sneasel easily dodged the other flamethrower attack and made an attempt to attack the smaller Pokemon.

"Magmar, fire punch!" Winston said.

Before Sneasel even hit Magby, the fire punch nearly connected if it wasn't for Marshtomp tackling the Magmar. Sneasel then wound up and unleashed a crush claw attack at both of them, which like the other battle, caused both Pokemon to faint.

"All right!" I said.

"No!" Winston shouted with steam coming out from his ears. "I wanted that Pokemon! It was mine, mine, mine! You'll pay for this!" Winston then ran off, and we decided to head to the center of town.

* * *

We were too late, as a big crowd of people, along with the police were there, all caused by Winston. They all looked at us, and Marie and I felt a bit of embarrassment. We decided to tell all of them the story, anyway. Hours later, they all understood and headed to the warehouse, where we brought out the baby Pokemon. Instead of sending them out to the wild, though, people decided to adopt them. Everybody left until Zack came running to us. 

"Guys, I heard! I don't know how you did it, but nice job, guys!" Zack said.

"Well,we didn't finish the job just yet," I said. I then faced Sneasel. "Do you wanna come travel with us?"

"Snee?" Sneasel asked.

"You could come traveling with us. We would have lots of fun and battles. The best part is you don't have to worry about getting into major trouble or even getting hungry. What do ya think?"

"Snee!" Sneasel said, nodding its head. We then shook hands on the agreement.

We decided to head back to the Pokemon Center to get some sleep. The next morning, we all packed up and headed out to the next town, this time with a new friend, and ready for a gym battle.

* * *

Note: Yet again does the shadow appear right in front of Derek's eyes. And it looks like we've seen a new character, along with Derek getting a Sneasel. Next chapter will be a little interesting and funny, not to mention a gym battle. 


End file.
